Bonfire Tales

The Legend of Deer Woman

The Legend of Deer Woman

The story tells of the Deer Woman, sometimes referred to as Deer Lady. Deer Woman has a mixed history, you see. Deer Woman is a deer spirit of the Eastern Woodlands and Central Plains tribes, associated with fertility and love.

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Deer Woman is a shape-shifting woman whose appearance is never quite stable. Like many Native American animal spirits, Deer Woman is sometimes depicted in animal form. Sometimes in human form, and sometimes in a mixed form.

She is described as being either young or old, with hooves in place of feet. In some stories, she takes the whole form of a deer - and then in other stories, the split is roughly half-woman half-deer. The lower half simply being that of a white-tailed deer.

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Some say that this more violent version of Deer Woman is actually a human woman who either transformed into a deer after being raped or was brought back to life by the original Deer Woman spirit after being murdered. Others say she's the same old Deer Woman, and just has a few good reasons to be in a worse mood these days.

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Originally, Deer Woman was usually considered a benign spirit who might help women conceive children. Some stories portray her as a dangerous being who might seduce men, especially adulterous or promiscuous men.

Today, she is widely known as a temptress, taking the form of a beautiful woman and luring men to their deaths. The method of death is said to be magical; the men are entranced by the deer and starve to death, or waste away.

Deer Woman often plays a "bogeyman" sort of role, said to trample incautious people to death, especially girl-crazy young men or disobedient children.

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Short Story

"Deer Woman tries her best to hide her hooved feet. If her feet were noticed, the spell is to be broken. When the spell is broken, Deer Woman flees as quickly as possible, but in some cases it isn't possible," Charlotte said, staring at her male classmates.

The campfire flickered as Charlotte continued, "It's said that if a man sees the woman's cloven feet and then sleeps with her, he can then temporarily capture her until she gives him her power - usually enabling him to become a better rider or warrior. If it isn't done right, the man will turn mad."

"Not only that, but she lurks in these woods all over Oklahoma. Deep in the middle of the night, waiting for her next victim. Either leading them into the woods to their deaths. Or even leaving them deep within the woods so that they pine away from being so lovesick," Charlotte finally finished.

"Beware the dangers that lurk deep within the forest. Beware of Deer Woman," Mikel laughingly joked. "There's no way that these stories are true. So many guys come here to cry about their rejection. I'm pretty sure they've returned or are even married now," he finished.

Charlotte squinted her eyes and said to Mikel, "You're making jokes and making them laugh, yet this is a serious situation. You wouldn't know if they made it out alive or not. Deer woman may just be out there right now. With Dan, Cain, Oliver, and Elijah being the most lovesick of the group, one of you, if not all of you, could be pulled in at the stroke of midnight. There are signs, ignore every sign you get tonight if you want to go home tomorrow."

Samantha glanced around at the students sitting at the campfire in fear. Through the crickets, came Charlotte's laughter. "Charlotte, that was so messed up. Are these stories true, though? Seriously, even a little?" Samantha asked, frightened. "We'll just have to find out after midnight now won't we, Samantha," Elijah smiled, shining a flashlight from under his chin.

"I wouldn't if I were you. No one really knows if it's true. Considering the story has been passed down from generations, someone must have seen something. There wouldn't be so much information on her. People who saw sightings of her lived because they turned the other way. Who knows what happened to people who gave into temptation or even thought like you. Nine times out of ten, they weren't lucky," Charlotte explained.

"Oh gosh. Do you guys hear this? What was the point of us coming on this trip and camping in the woods with camping stories if we can't explore? Just like being in a sleepover. What's the point of talking about the boogeyman and Bloody Mary without playing the game?" Elijah complained. "We came for a football and cheerleading outing since we won the finals. It was a treat not a trick. Careful, it's not Halloween anymore, Elijah," Elias explained to his brother.

Charlotte flipped her curls from her face and said, "Well, if you do decide to snoop around like an idiot at midnight. You should know, the smoke from tobacco followed by chanting can ward her away. Hopefully we see you in the morning, Elijah. Goodnight everyone." Charlotte's schoolmates watched as she settled in her tent for the night. Everyone said their goodnights and left Elijah alone with his thoughts of finding Deer Woman.

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The next morning the students got ready to load up and head back towards the school. "So, I counted 26. We're missing someone. We can't leave until we figure out who we have lost. Does everybody have their assigned buddy?" Dan called out.

"Did you count Charlotte? You know last time you forgot to count her," Cain stated. Dan sighed and yelled, "Yes, I counted her. We're still left with 26! Who the hell is missing!" "Has anyone seen Elijah? He slept in the tent last night, but when I woke up this morning he wasn't in there. I looked this morning in the woods but I didn't see him. I've called, no answer. Text, no response," Elias informed.

Charlotte shook her head and continued to pack her bag to set out. Instead of helping search for Elijah, she stayed back and kicked her feet up. After hours of searching for Elijah, turning over every stone, he was yet to be found. By noon, all the students gathered back in the center, but without any sign of Elijah.

As students loaded their bags on the buses, Elias let out a sigh of relief. "I just got a text from him. He said our mom came to get him for an appointment he had today. Considering they wanted me to enjoy the outing, she got him only," said Elias.

Charlotte let out a chuckle to herself and entered the woods. Simply being suspicious, she'd gone into an area of the woods that seemed to be a perfect spot for a hostage. Walking past a tree, Charlotte saw Elijah kneeling and looking up as if he were looking at someone.

Curiously, Charlotte walked up to Elijah and looked at him more in detail. Just from looking at Elijah's condition, Charlotte could figure out what had happened to him. Deer Woman found her next victim: Elijah Willis. Stuck in a powerful, magical entrancement.

"I told you not to search for Deer Woman at midnight. Now look at what happened to you. Pining away in your love sickness. You just had to be that one idiot that the town's gonna go crazy over. You are stuck here for as long as she wants you to be. If only you had listened to me when I told those supposed stories. When they find out you were here all along, hell's gonna break loose," Charlotte whispered to Elijah.

"But don't worry. They'll send a search team to try and find you. You better hope they're as lucky as I am. If they aren't, all they'll find is your rotten flesh," she finished. Just before leaving Elijah in the woods, Charlotte happens to see what seems to be Deer Woman. Yet, Charlotte shows her a smile instead of fear.

The End